The wall is broken, the gate is burning ...

Weeds peaking through the sidewalk & homes

in need of upkeep are a common

sight in parts of Altoona.

A few years ago my wife & I bought a rental property near downtown Altoona and in a rougher neighborhood. To say the place was trashed would be an understatement. In the bottom apartment all the rooms had been painted one of three colors; dark blue, neon purple or black. The kitchen and bathroom were both ruined by the previous tenants, every single window needed to be replaced and the drop ceiling was destroyed ... we're talking a real wreck. The upstairs apartment was slightly better but when I say "slightly", I mean it ... I won't bore you with the details. But, as we started the long process of restoring the property to wholeness, I realized that the other properties in the area were in a similar condition.

Two years ago when I decided to try to sell we were told by several realtors that we shouldn't spend another dime doing repairs because we would never get it back in the final price. Now, think about it ... this problem will only spiral downward. If I don't put money into my property, it will stay rundown and sink the value of the whole neighborhood lower. Then, none of the other property owners will put a dime into thier properties for the same reason. Now, let me be clear, I'm not blaming anyone. My realtor was right; according to the figures, I wouldn't have gotten my money back out of the place ...

Here's what I'm driving at ... we've talked in the previous blog posts about the apathy and depression that seem to plague some of the residents of our area; I think blight adds to that. If urban blight and rundown homes cause the people to whom we are trying to reach out, to struggle with despair and hopelessness, then it's fair to say that blight is, to some degree, a spiritual problem. There's been a lot of attention in local media regarding blight and a lot of people have kicked around solutions. However, if part of the problem is a spiritual problem then part of the answer must be a spiritual answer: PRAYER.

Consider the following passage:

"And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.” As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven." Nehemiah 1:3, 4

To beat blight we must pray that the Lord would restore our honor to us much like Nehemiah did. You'll notice that if you read on in that same book of the Bible that Nehemiah ended up going to the city, risking his own safety and spending his own free time working to restore the honor of Jerusalem. In short, God gave Nehemiah a love for his homeland. Would God do a similar thing for Altoona?

Today:

• Pray that God would give home owners & landlords the desire to be "good stewards" of their property.
• Pray that God would allow elected officials to pass laws upholding the value of our city.
• Pray that God would provide workers to help those unable to do the work themselves.
• Pray against the spiritual influences that lead to vandalism and destructive behavior.

Lord, build up our walls and restore our places of honor. To you be all the glory Lord Jesus.